Sunset,Disclosures and Promises
by Right4Me
Summary: Charlotte and Cooper after Dell's funeral.


The sun was beginning to set over the Pacific Ocean. Charlotte King was sitting on the beach sand, crossed legged, still wearing the back blouse and slacks she wore earlier that day for Dell's funeral. She was watching the sun set over the ocean.

"Hey, Violet told me you were here. Mind if I sit with you?" Cooper asks as he sits near her in the sand.

Charlotte looks up at him and gives a nod.

"You were a million miles away today at Dell's funeral. I mean, I know you were the last one with him in the operating room. I know you stayed with his body until they brought him to the morgue." Cooper holds her hand. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Charlotte takes a deep breath. "I don't like funerals."

"Nobody does Charlotte. Funerals stink."

"Dying so young. It's not fair. They were about the same age when they died." Charlotte stares out over the ocean.

"Who else died young?" Cooper asks looking at her.

Charlotte stares out over the ocean a minute then turns to Cooper with tears in her eyes.

"My ex-husband. He was twenty seven when he died."

"How'd he die?" Cooper asks softly.

"He died in Iraq." Charlotte replies tears starting to fall down her face.

"He was in the army?"

"He wanted to enlist when he was younger with some of his friends, but I wouldn't let him. I wanted to get married, start a family, so he stayed home and married me."

"So, what happened? How did he end up in the army?"

"I was in medical school at the time. I was busy with studying and hospital rotations, I wasn't home a lot. He started staying at work, doing a lot of overtime. He got really close with one of his co-workers. I should've seen it coming but I was too busy to notice." Charlotte tells as she watches the sun setting over the ocean.

"He cheated on you?" Cooper asks.

"Apparently" Charlotte answers.

"So what did you do?"

"I left him. The day I found out I packed my bags and left. He tried to apologize. I wouldn't hear it."

"Did you ever see him after that?"

"He came to me and begged me to forgive him. He said if I divorced him he would join the army. Said there would be nothing to stop him since I was the only reason he didn't enlist in the first place."

"What'd you say?"

"I said I didn't care. I told him to go join the army and get himself blown up. I told him I didn't give a damn about him anymore. Then it happened. He joined the army and got himself blown up. They scattered his ashes over the ocean." Charlotte stares out over the water.

Cooper puts his arm around her shoulder. "It's not your fault, you know that don't you?"

"If I forgave him, if I gave him a second chance like you gave me, he'd still be alive." Charlotte stares at Cooper.

"It was his decision to enlist. It's not your fault." Cooper wipes away a tear on her face with his thumb.

"I should have forgiven him."

"Maybe it was just his time Charlotte. Maybe it was just Dell's time too. I don't know. I do know that you can't sit here and second guess everything."

"Life's not fair. He died so young and Dell too. What's going to happen to poor Betsey?"

"I know Charlotte. Life's not fair. We just have to learn from our mistakes and do the best we can."

"I'm tryin' that's why I forgave you for the things you said." She looks at Cooper.

"Yeah... about that... I need to make that right." Cooper looks down at the sand.

"What do you mean?" Charlotte asks tears still in her eyes.

"The things I said were inexcusable. I'm sorry doesn't seem enough. I promise you I know I was wrong... so wrong to say any of that stuff." Cooper looks at her.

"I know I'm not easy." She wipes a way some tears and sniffles.

"You didn't deserve that. I probably don't deserve you but I promise you I'm going to try to be the man you deserve from now on."

"You already are."

Cooper sits face to face with Charlotte and rests his forehead on hers. "Look at me." He says.

Charlotte looks into his eyes. "I love you. I always have. I never stopped. We're going to have a great life together. I promise."

"I promise you too." Charlotte answers looking straight into his eyes.

The sun sets over the beach. Charlotte and Cooper embrace and kiss.


End file.
